Tuesday 10 April 2012

Day 374: Taupo and Tongoriro

Sunset over the landscape near Tongoriro
It is a funny thing about being on your own.  You are under no obligation to agree on plans with other people so you don't even agree with them yourself.  Half the time I don't really know what I want to do until I've done it.  This morning, I didn't know if I wanted to go up to the start of the Tongariro or to swim in lake Taupo.  I also had some writing to finish.  I decided to collect everything I could possibly need and just set out and see what happened.  At the intersection I drove towards Taupo, and stopped at the best picnic spot along the lake. For some reason this is a spot I always end up in.  It was cold even out of the water and I realised I had forgotten my towel, a change of underwear and my hiking boots.  I sat in the car with the door open, looking out over the lake and writing.   When I finished a big piece of writing I evicted a large bumblebee and several smaller bugs from the car and decided what I really wanted now was poached eggs.  For some reason, I'm addicted to poached eggs in New Zealand.  I sat in the cafe, tidied up my writing work, and considered the fact that I still didn't know what I wanted to do.  I decided that if I drove back to my picnic spot and parked in the sun the car would turn into a green house.  I could go swimming in my wetsuit, then warm up in the car even without a towel.  Then I could drive to Tongariro, by which time my swimsuit would be dry and I would go for a late afternoon walk along the easy parts. Actually, at one point I tried to convince myself I would be better off returning to the hot springs, and that the cost of entry would make up for the savings in petrol.  It was only the thought that this would be boring of me that made me change my mind and follow the plan instead.

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